Nurses at Manly Hospital protest over concerns about jobs at new Northern Beaches Hospital
AROUND 40 nurses walked out in protest over delays and lack of information surrounding their jobs. They say they’re upset and anxious about the future.
Manly
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NURSES walked out of Manly Hospital for around half an hour today because of concerns about the move to the new Northern Beaches Hospital.
Around 40 staff decided to walk out in protest this afternoon, armed with placards and chanting about wanting answers.
They are still waiting to hear whether they will have a job at the new hospital, run by private company Healthscope, when it opens in October.
Manly Hospital is due to close after the opening and Mona Vale Hospital will become a walk in health centre, as well as offering rehabilitation.
Staff concerns include:
*Delays in the job matching process
*Lack of information on jobs at the new hospital
*Clarity on the staffing structure
*Confusion over whether they will need extra qualifications to do the same job
One theatre nurse, Stephanie, 34, who did not want her surname printed, was part of the protest. She is a single mother with two children.
She believes a move to the new hospital will mean she will lose money.
“I don’t want to go to the new hospital because there are no guarantees I’d get on-call shifts. If I don’t I’ll be out of pocket about $1,000 a month and I can’t afford to lose that sort of money.
“But where will I go? My children are established at their school and we are part of the community there. It’s hard to sleep at night when you don’t know your future. This move will have a devastating impact.”
Another theatre nurse Oliver Debarge said he wanted to work at the new hospital, because it would be close to home and the equipment would be new.
“But I’m concerned there is no real information about the job and how it will work,” he said,
“I want to know who is going to be the person working next to me? Will they be well trained and competent?
“Will there be enough senior staff in place? This is information the public need to know about too.”
Manly branch president of the NSW Nurses and Midwife’s Association Lyn Hopper said the half-hour walkout at 3.15pm was designed not to effect patients.
But, she said nurses felt compelled to take action after being treated with what she said was “utter contempt” by health bosses.
She said there were concerns across the board, but recent issues included fears that intensive care nurses may not be able to transfer to the new ICU without gaining extra qualifications.
Staff understand that half of all intensive care nurses at the new hospital will be required to have a post graduate degree.
They said they learned this a couple of weeks before Christmas, meaning it was now too late for some to apply for a university course before the move in October.
One ICU nurse, who did not want to be named, said she had 20 years’ experience looking after critically ill patients, but feared she may end up on a general ward.
“All the skills and knowledge I have acquired in a critical setting will go to waste,” she said.
“If you asked the public whether they would prefer one of their relatives in ICU to be cared for by someone with more qualifications, but less experience, or someone with 20 years’ experience, they would prefer the nurse with experience.
“I know I would.
“Experience is more valuable.”
The mum said she would currently be unable to juggle study, along with work and a family, even though she values education.
“For me I would have to make the decision on whether to go back into education on a year-by-year basis,” she said.
Ms Hopper said if health bosses had been transparent more nurses could have got their qualifications in time for the move.
“Why was this not mentioned two years ago when the process first started?” she said.
“Nurses could have applied for courses and got their certificates by now.”
Ms Hopper said the ICU issue was one of a number of “landmines” staff had faced recently.
She said anaesthetists and their colleagues were also outraged after they were initially told those assisting anaesthetists at the new hospital would not need to be registered nurses.
However, she said after the concerns were raised bosses then sent a letter, which the Manly Daily has seen, saying they had reconsidered and registered nurses could be part of the anaesthetist unit after all.
Ms Hopper said staff in general were desperate for more information and miserable over delays in the job matching process.
A spokesman for Northern Sydney Local Health District confirmed some ICU nurses would need to have post-graduate qualifications because it was a Level 5 hospital, dealing with all but the most highly complex patients and cases.
However, not all Northern Beaches Hospital staff would need postgraduate qualifications.
“For many staff who will work at the new Northern Beaches Hospital this presents an exciting opportunity, but for some staff we understand this may be an unsettling time,” the spokesman said.
He said that there had been a number of staff forums and information provided on the move to the new hospital and its staffing structure had also been presented to staff and published on the staff intranet.
The spokesman said staff would be matched to similar positions and they would be invited to express an interest in that position next month.
“We hope that everyone offered a position will take up the opportunity to work in the world-class facility, delivering a high standard of healthcare and broad experiences for its workforce,” he said.
“No one will be forced to move to the new hospital and every effort will be made to find another suitable position in NSW Health should they not wish to transfer.”
The spokesman added that about 1,300 full time staff are needed at Northern Beaches Hospital — about 400 more staff than at Manly and Mona Vale hospitals currently.